You may find some non-corrosive ammo at http://www.ammunitionstore.com/. Though I've heard nothing but bad about Olympic and nothing at all about the Serbian stuff. You aren't going to find much, I fear. All the American made ammo is under-loaded and expensive. Most of the foreign commercial ammunition is still expensive or crappy.

Fingolfin

September 18, 2005, 02:25 AM

Cole Distributing is advertising FNM 8mm for $6/box if you want new production for cheap.

http://www.coledistributing.com/

Snowdog

September 18, 2005, 03:21 AM

If you look around, you can easily find quality 8x57 non-corrosive FMJ for under $10/20. However, you'll want to be absolutely certain that the ammunition you purchase is indeed non-corrosive, as some don't specify corrosiveness or describe corrosive ammunition as non-corrosive (SOG has a penchant for this).

If you don't plan on shooting all that often, I'd recommend Sellier&Bellot 7.92x57JS 196gr FMJ. Though this ammunition typically runs around $10/20, this is relatively high-quality ammunition that I find my M48A loves to print small groups with.

fisherman66

September 18, 2005, 03:33 AM

Assuming you clean your gun after shooting it, the corrosive ammo is OK. It is not hunting material, but it's great for punching paper.

I've heard of people swapping bullets and putting a soft point on the corrosive round.

Samco Global also has Austrian-made 8mm which they advertise as non-corrosive, I think around $8/20. $0.369 per round, IIRC.

Is the FNM stuff Berdan or boxer primed?

I'm looking for non-corrosive 8mm because I just bought an FN-49, and I just don't like using corrosive ammo in semi-autos.

fisherman66

September 18, 2005, 03:53 PM

Ahhh...I don't blame you.

sumpnz

September 18, 2005, 07:09 PM

Your cheapest, decent quality, full power, non-corrosive ammo will be - wait for it - your own handloads. You can handload full power 8mm for around $8/20 very easily. $6.50/20 is certainly doable, and if you're really good at finding good powder deals, and cheap bullets $5/20 can be possible. Even compared to the crappy Serbian ammo, but especially compared to the S&B, it won't take too many boxes for the reloading equipment kit to pay for itself.

Langenator

September 18, 2005, 08:44 PM

Of course, my favorite way to acquire brass to to buy reloadable ammo and unload it through the barrel of the appropriate firearm...

stolivar

September 18, 2005, 09:43 PM

I can reload for my 8mm under 6 dollars a box very easily. If I had to pay $8 for 20 rounds I would just buy the darn stuff. Most of the time I can reload for around $4.50 a box for 8 mm.

steve

Langenator

September 20, 2005, 06:39 PM

OK, I've got a question: is the FNM ammo reloadable or not?

On Samco's page, it says it's Berdan primed. But in the Cole's ad in SGN, it says it's reloadable.

ooooo a group of 8mm reloaders! got any pet loads that you're willing to share?

my bench/reloading corner isnt finished yet, but i have all the components, and went ahead and got a startup supply of bullets from hornady, nosler, speer, and splurged on some barnes-x. a couple friends had some extra powder (forget which ones) and i picked up a small can as well (again i forget).

i'll be loading plinking stuff just for giggles for the k98 and yugo m48a, but also some hunting loads for my remington 700 classic chambered for 8mm mauser.

so far the cheapest bullets i've found are the nosler ballistic tips, one shop puts boxes of them on sale for like $11/50, been buying them whenever i see them at that price.

got any suggestions on where to get unfired brass? i have over 100 pieces of various winchester and remington brass from buying commercial ammo the last few years, but i'd like to get a few hundred more.

sumpnz

September 21, 2005, 11:10 PM

spiff - I've got a Turk M38 (29.5" tube). I have some handloads cooked up by my former FFL that launch a 150gr Hornady Spire Point at 3007fps. Used Remington brass, CCI 200 lg rifle primers, and 52.0 grains of AA 2520. That's nearly, if not, a max load so approach with the usual caution.

If you ever want to sell that Remmy, let me know.

MidwayUSA has R-P 8mm brass (http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=149408) and Winchester 8mm brass (http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=641277), all new and unprimed. Those links are for boxes of 500 pieces. The R-P is also available in 100 and 1000, the Win is also available in 50 and 1000 pieces.

Soon as I get a set of dies I'll be loading plenty of 8mm myself - until then it's just 6.5 Swede. But when I do get into loading 8mm I have about 1000 pulled FMJ bullets (~350 154gr, ~650 196gr) that were given to me by another THR member (Buckeye_PPC - haven't seen him around here for a while though).

That's what I thought too...which is why I was looking at the FNM stuff.

Anyone know if the FNM ammo used a Berdan primer or a boxer one?

Fingolfin

September 22, 2005, 01:10 PM

Different caliber, but says boxer:

http://www.ammunitionstore.com/Images/Ammo/A080.3.htm

Listed here as boxer primed also:

http://www.chestnutridge.com/products/ammo.asp

The stuff Samco is advertising as FNM berdan primed sounds like something else, maybe older ammo. I say that because they call it surplus, and it's on stripper clips instead of in a box like newly manufactured ammo. *shrug*

Gewehr98

September 22, 2005, 01:37 PM

Accurate, full-power, and reloadable!

Spiff, shoot me a PM, I've got all sorts of 8x57 loads I've worked up over the years. I used to shoot an 8mm FN-49 in High Power matches, and run 198gr match loads. Sierra finally started offering their 198gr MatchKing for domestic sale in the last couple years. ;)

stolivar

September 22, 2005, 10:21 PM

I have the turk 38 with 29 inch barrel and I am getting 3000 fps with 150 grain sierra bullets. This is also max load. One heck of a good deer load.

steve :neener:

TooTaxed

September 23, 2005, 07:10 PM

You're going to love this! ;) Found out by accident that SOME of the Romanian cheap surplus ammo from the early 1970's is boxer primed! Look for cases marked "21 RPR", which stands for Plant #21, Republica Populara Romana. It's almost certainly corrosive, so wash the cases within a few days of firing.

Regrettably, that's the only surplus boxer-primed 8-mm Mauser I've found. Other Romanian is berdan-primed. Does anyone know of other reloadable surplus 8-mm?

I bought 760 rounds of that stuff and I have found it to be (not suprisingly) midly corrosive. Its pretty good stuff though but its the ONLY ammunition that I have found to work in my Hakim since it has a headspace problem and only feeds steel cased ammo. Just make sure you clean your rifle GOOD after EVERY shooting and you will be just fine with the Romanian stuff.

ajax

September 24, 2005, 10:25 AM

Remander go to www.sportsmansguide.com. They carry a couple types of non-corrosive. FNM,Romanian,Greek can all be had in bulk. They also carry Win. Rem. PMC. in 20 rounds a pop. :)

Domino

September 24, 2005, 10:31 AM

They carry a couple types of non-corrosive. FNM,Romanian,Greek can all be had in bulk. They also carry Win. Rem. PMC. in 20 rounds a pop.

The Romanian steel-cased ammo IS corrosive

ajax

September 24, 2005, 10:40 AM

Domino I hear what your saying but i ve already put 100 rounds through my rifle and let it sit for 2 days and ive seen no rust yet. Also humidity here is rockin. Still no rust.

Domino

September 24, 2005, 01:37 PM

Ajax, Century (http://www.centuryarms.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=690) has the same stuff and advertises it as "corrosive." Sportsmans guide is the ONLY place that sales it advertised as "non-corrosive," the rest simply do not say.

I know that it is at least mildly corrosive for a fact so, if I were you than I would keep an eye on it. Other than that it is an excellent deal but, I would never believe 100% when surplus rifle ammo is advertised as non-corrosive. Most of it was so I would never take their word for it and just proceed with caution.

ajax

October 5, 2005, 07:09 PM

This is a old thread but i have to say something. I'll eat my shorts and give you my address Domino so that you can send me a pair of your shorts and I'll eat those to if that ammo from Sportsman Guide is corrosive. I shot that stuff on the 22nd still havn't cleand my gun to any real degree and still no rust. I hate to say it but it is I'm right. :neener:

Remander

October 7, 2005, 02:09 AM

Any more thoughts on the Romanian 8mm from Sportsmans Guide before I buy some?

Their price is dirt cheap, but I don't mind spending a bit more elsewhere if the ammo is more assured of being non-corrosive.

Thanks for any help.

Feanaro

October 7, 2005, 07:03 AM

I assume that ALL surplus 8mm is corrosive. I've never seen any that wasn't, though it could, of course, exist. If you insist on non-corrosive, I wouldn't buy it.

RaggedClaws

October 7, 2005, 09:03 AM

The steel cased Romanian may or may not be corrosive, but it's extremely dirty and smelly, and noticeably not as accurate as the 70's brass cased Yugo stuff.